The invention pertains to a weft carrier positioning device for shuttleless looms of the type wherein weft yarn is drawn from a stationary source located externally of the inserting means of the loom. Opposed weft carrier members, fixed on the free ends of flexible tapes that are wrapped about and unwrapped from tape wheels mounted on the sides of the loom, are inserted and withdrawn from sheds formed by warp threads during their function of inserting and extending each pick of weft as is well known to those conversant in the weaving art.
The opposed weft carriers are known generally as the inserting carrier and the extending carrier. The inserting carrier introduces each pick of weft into the shed and at a position approximately the center of the latter it meets and transfers the introduced weft to the extending carrier which is effective in drawing the introduced weft through the remainder of the shed to complete a single pick.
It is a common and frequent practice for loom fixers to stop a loom to inspect both the inserting and extending carriers by separating adjacent warp threads of the upper sheet of warp threads and then carefully guiding the carrier upwardly through this separation thus making it accessible for whatever attention it may require. Frequently nicks or burrs need to be removed which of course would be detrimental to the warp thread. The gripping elements of the carriers may need readjusting or replacement to increase or decrease the gripping force thereof. Additionally carriers which are detachable from their respective tapes or which include replaceable components are brought out of the shed in the manner described for the purpose of making such replacements.
Prior to the instant invention the means employed to guide a carrier out of the shed to a position above the latter was considered quite time consuming as well as dangerous to that person guiding the carrier out of the shed. Two people usually participate in positioning the carrier in an accessible location which requires one person turning the loom's handwheel while the other separates adjacent threads of the upper warp sheet with one hand and with the other grasps and guides the carrier and its tape while it is being advanced by movement of said handwheel. The leading ends of the carrier are relatively sharp and pointed and bodily injury is easily inflicted if the carrier is moved more rapidly or stopped more suddenly than is anticipated by the person guiding the carrier. Another method of extracting a carrier from the shed is that of one person holding the shipper handle with one hand and jogging the loom while with the other hand separating a pair of adjacent warp threads of the upper warp sheet while inserting an implement such as a steel scale for guiding the carrier upwardly through the separation. The latter method is also time consuming and equally dangerous to bodily injury as well as to the warp threads themselves.
The weft carrier positioning device comprising the invention has eliminated the problems described above by providing a means which enables one person to quickly, safely and in a positive manner move a weft carrier out of the shed and to an accessible position above the latter.